Queen of her Lair

It’s a bold statement, but Lair is most dominating high school softball player the Texas Panhandle has ever seen.

“Kyra has been everything to our program the last four years,” Canyon coach Nicole Coffee said. “I think that’s what has made her so dominant. She has so much experience. She goes out and does her thing. She has such good command, and she always hits her spots. It’s amazing to watch her.”

Lair, who will play at West Texas A&M next season, has made a not so known area like Amarillo known for high school softball.

To opponent’s that’s faced the hard throwing righthander, It has felt like they've been facing Lair for 10 years.

Hereford coach Ashley Marquez has been on the other side of the dugout watching Lair the last four years. As much as Marquez doesn't like losing to Canyon, she has the ultimate respect for the competitor Lair has become.

“She is a tough opponent that everyone in the state has respect for,” Marquez said. “Her poise in the circle is on thing that makes her a great player. Wether you get a base hit or a home run, or you string some hits together, she never loses that poise. Some pitches may get rattled. You never see that from Kyra. It’s a major challenge to get into her head. She’s a great kid with a big heart. It will be exciting to watch her career grow at WT.

Lair has started all four years on varsity, while being the Lady Eagles ace in the circle for the last three.

“It’s gone really fast,” said Lair, who is 54-6 with 601 K’s over the past two seasons. “I didn’t think it would go this fast. My freshman year the seniors told me to take it all in. “I never thought I’d be this successful. Coming into high school I wasn’t very known. No one expected me to fill a role. Looking back to my freshman year to now, I realize how hard I had to work to get where I’m at.”

Lair made herself known as a sophomore, leading Canyon to the Class 5A regional finals before falling to Birdville.

But it was last season, when it all came together.

Lair started putting up school-records, winning 27 games in a season, and racking up 268 strikeouts.

With Lair at the top of her game, and a host of talented seniors surrounding her, Canyon made Texas Panhandle history becoming the first team from the area to advance to the Class 5A state tournament.

“It was the best feeling in the world,” Lair said. “You had so many people watching you. You got the recognition for how hard you had been working. It was just a thrilling ride all season. The memories you got to make with your teammates was the best though.”

Canyon’s quest of a state championship fell short in the semifinals as the big senior group graduated.

At the start of the 2018 season, Canyon had a lot of youth, thrusting Lair into a leadership role with senior center fielder Mackenzie Moore and junior shortstop Candain Callahan.

The veteran trio mixed with the young talent has lead the Lady Eagles to a fourth straight District 3-5A championship.

On top of that impressive mark, Lair’s team is 31-4 and is headed back to the regional semifinals for a fifth straight year when they meet Arlington Heights in a best-of-three series starting at 7 p.m., tonight in Henrietta.

“The team looks to her more than I’ve ever seen this year,” Coffee said. “Not so much on offense, but on defense. Last week against Lubbock Cooper, things weren’t going our way. Kyra was able to settle everyone down and take control of situations.”

The only downfall for Lair, is there isn’t a No. 2 pitcher. Coffee has asked more from her two-time Amarillo Globe-News Softball Player of the Year.

As expected, Lair’s responded. She’s 27-4 in an eye-opening 170 innings pitched this year, shattering her previous school-record of 268 strikeouts with 343.

“It’s been difficult,” said Lair, who needs one more win to break her own school-record. “It’s been hard on my arm and my body. I’ve been doing a good job of staying ahead and throwing strikes. My team has been there to back me up and they’ve been there for me. My defense has done my job. But I love being a part of this team.”

“Every single year we’ve been able to comeback the next year striving to do better. We’re hoping to do it again this year.”

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